In the communication service business, such as the telecommunication business or the cable television business, the physical channels for carrying signals comprises a variety of cables, such as twisted copper pairs, coaxial cables or optic fibers. For new installations and maintenance, it is often necessary to splice the physical channels in order to provide or repair a connection from the provider to the customer. The physical channels are often placed above the existing terrain (aerial installations) or buried underground or placed elsewhere.
In general, a technician that splices such channels works in a variety of environments, which range from inside areas with controlled environments to outside areas with extreme weather conditions. The equipment used to provide splices and the physical channel being spliced need an environment suitable for providing a good splice and a safe situation for the technician. Because the demand for bandwidth continues to increase and cost of optical fiber has decreased, a fiber communication channel is considered a great value for providing high bandwidth. Hence technicians are busy with installations of fiber that require splicing of optical fibers. Fusion splicers have been developed for splicing a first fiber optic to a second fiber optic.
Fusion splicing uses heat to join two optical fibers end-to-end. The objective is to fuse the two fibers together in such a way that light passing through the fibers is not scattered or reflected back by the splice, and so that the splice and the region surrounding it are just about as strong as the virgin fiber itself. The source of heat for the fusion splicer is usually an electric arc, but can also be a tungsten filament through which current is passed.
Several steps are necessary to splice optical fibers including stripping the coating off the two fibers to be spliced together and then cleaning the fibers. Next, each fiber is cleaved so that its endface is substantially flat and perpendicular to the axis of the fiber. Then the two endfaces of the fibers are aligned. After the fibers are aligned, the two fibers are fused together. Finally, the bare fiber area is protected either by recoating or installing a splice protector. In addition, it is often desirable to perform a proof-test to ensure that the splice is strong enough to survive handling, packaging and extended use.
Alternatives to fusion splicing include using optical fiber connectors or mechanical splices. Such alternative splicing techniques generally produce a splice having higher insertion losses, lower reliability and higher return losses than the splice provided by a fusion splicer.
Fusion splicing machines or fusion splicers for fiber-optic cables are relatively expensive, and historically fiber splices were performed in stable, controlled environments such as in “splicing trailers,” portable splicing labs, or in cable vaults. However, recent industry trends have driven the need for technicians to be able to splice fiber-optic cables basically anywhere, quickly and easily. One of the most difficult locations to splice fiber-optic cables is actually in aerial closures where the technician performs a splice from a bucket of an aerial bucket truck, in a splicing closure usually suspended about 15-30 feet from the ground. Technicians must not only worry about the fact that the splicing tools are exposed to the weather, but also the fact that it is very difficult to secure the splicing machine in a manner that facilitates a safe and easy fiber-optic splice.
To alleviate several of the aforementioned problems with splicing fiber, several workstations have been proposed. However, such workstations do not meet the needs of a telecommunication technician splicing fibers in many environments where telecommunication fibers serve as communication channels.